Furnace



INVENT'OR ./0/2/7 E 9a/fer AT'TORNEY March 19, 1929. J. F. BAKER FURNAGE Filed May 27,

ITNESSES:

,J Mm

ll-ll," of Fig. 1,' and l charged.l

Patented Mar. 1929.

JOHN F. BAKER,

0F MANSFIELD, OHIO, ASSIC'I'FI'OB- EO WESTIN'GHOUSE ELEOTRIC MANUFACTUBINGCOMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

FURNACE.

Application med- Iay 27,

My invention relates to furnaces and especially to conveyors for use in furnaces. u

An object of myinvention is tol-provide a simple, eliicient conveyor that may be manufactured at a relatively low cost. y

Another 'object of my invention is to pro' vide means to produce al more uniform` annealing of material by causing it to be'repeatedly turned. i y

Another object of my invention is to provide an efficientpositively-acting driving means,

`Further objects will be apparent from the drawing and the description which follows.

In the present embodiment of my. invention, hoops or` other suitable containers are y Moslidably positioned 'in-a furnace muflie. tor-driven star wheels or other actuating means are provided to drive the hoo'ps along the track in the muflle. .The objects to be annealed are fed in at an inlet, and an outlet, preferably in the floor of the mulile, is provided at a distant point from vthe inlet through which the annealed objects are disln the drawings, l Figure 1 is a horizontal sectional .view of the furnace embodying my invention, I

Figure 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the furnace and muiile taken on the line Figure 3 is a transverse section taken on the line lll-71H of Figure 2.

A furnace 11 has a chamber 12 in which is placed a mume 13. The mufile 13 1s here shown as made in two horizon al sections 14. Each section is provided with anges 15 for spacing and' strengthening purposes. 'Each section has a. recess portion 16 and these recesses, when the muiile sections are assembled, register to form a longitudinal continuous track or passageway.

Suitable heatin means 17, preferably electrical, are provi ed on eachI muflie section. Each of these heating means is provided with a heating coil 18 which is, of course, properly insulated. Y

A partition or insulating wall 19 may be placed within the hollow portion 20 of the muffle. The rhume passage preferably comprises two longitudinal port-ions 21 which are connected, at their ends, by enlarged portions 22. Rotatablymounted on a shaft 23 in each of these enlarged'portions is a star Wheel 24:. At

Amaterial.

, liquid seal.

1926. serial No. 111,939.

the other end of the shaft 23 is a bevel gear wheel 25 which meshes with a bevel gear wheel 26.' The gear wheels 26 are mounted on ashaft 27 that is operatively connected, by sultable gearing 28, to a motor 29.

'I he shaft 27 is mounted in bearings 30 wluch are supported'by cross bars 31.' The cross bars 31 may be conveniently secured to -furnace supports 32.

Restin on the floor of the muflle passage are suita le conveying means which are here shown as containers or hoops 33. These hoops are in substantial contact with each other, except ,in the enlarged end port-ions Where they engage with the star wheels. These contain. ers preferably have no top and no bottom.

vAn inclined inlet 34, for the purpose of feeding materialtom the conveying means, is provided. This inlet may have a flap valve 35 to close the inletexcept when material is being Ifed through.` An outlet 36, preferably opening through the ioor of the mufiie passage, has its lower end .extending into a fluidl-containing tank 3.7.

'In the operation ofthe .furnace, Aafter it has reached the proper temperature, the motor may be started and, as is apparent, the star wheels, whenV rotated will drive the hoo s along theiloor of the muiiie passa e. aterial maybe fed in at the inlet either intermittentlyo continuously and will fall into the, hoops and be carried along, being gradually annealed. Of course the time of passage between the inlet and the outlet may be so determined as to properly lanneal the As each hoop passes over the outlet, the annealed material will drop through it into the fluid-containing tank to quench thesame. The tank, `with its contents, also serves as a This furnace, while obviously of general utility, is especially adapted for use as a bright-annealing furnace.

In such furnaces the muflie is filled with a gas which will not chemicall combine with the material to be annealed. gince such gases are expensive, it is desirable to have muie passages of small volume. It is also desirable to have the passage of very low'height as compared with its length. Such a passage I am enabled to provide by the use of' my novel conveying means.

My furnace 1s especially adapted for the bright annealin of balls for bearings or other'rotatable o jects. Since the hoops have no bottoms, the balls rest on the door ot the passage and, as the hoops are driven alon the Hoor of the passage, the balls will roll t ereon. They Will thus be turned over and over,

and a uniform annealing of the ballsw/Will be insured.

lt, of course, will be obvious that this 1n- -vention may be practiced in other Ways and at their tops andbottoms adapted to travel on said track, and means to drive said containers whereby each container is caused to periodically register With said outlet.

, 2. A conveying apparatus comprising a moa-ree continuous track, said track bein provided With a discharge opening, a p nrality ot A conveying apparatus comprising ay continuous track, saidtrack being provided With a discharge opening, a plurality of hoo s adapted to receive material and to slide n said track, each hoop being in operative con-l tact with adjacent hoops,'and a star Wheel tosuccessively engage the hoops to drive them along said track, whereby each hoop is caused to periodically register with said opening to have its contents discharged therethrough.

v ln testimony whereof, l have hereunto subscribed my name this 20th day oi3 May, 1926.

, JUHN l?. BAKER. 

